Can I please come down?
by JackFrostFanROtG
Summary: It's the annual talent show in the mushroom kingdom. What's going to happen when Luigi takes this opportunity to let his brother know how lonely he truly feels.


**Edited to the request of an anonymous reviewer. Hope this is good :)**

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><p>It was nearing the month of the annual Mushroom Kingdom Talent Show held in the castle garden and Mario was once again looking forward to performing his famous magic routine that won him first place every year. Luigi, on the other hand, was looking forward to finally be doing an act with his older twin brother.<p>

"Hey, bro!" Mario called to his younger brother, who was still fixing breakfast for the two. "I can't wait til the show!"

"Me neither." Luigi replied happily.

"Toad and I've got everything planned out for our new act. It's gonna be great!"

Luigi stopped flipping the eggs, he didn't know how exactly to respond to that. "With Toad?" He said solemnly.

"Yeah, I told Toad the other day that we could team up. He came up with this great idea. First we will..." Mario continued to brag about the exciting new acts he and Toad were going to do. He didn't even realize Luigi was no longer paying attention.

_"But you already promised to do it with me." _He thought sadly, he knew he should have known better. He did the same thing the year before, except with one of his other _many _fans, and the year before that it was another... And another. Every year then Luigi wound up not doing the show at all due to his stage fright. Heck, the last two years he didn't even show up and Mario didn't even notice. However, Luigi didn't want to be selfish or pushy so he just nodded his head . He put on a fake, solemn smile andannounced. "That's great. I wish you two the best of luck. Breakfast's ready."

Luigi placed the fried eggs and bacon on two plates and sat one in front of Mario and one in front of his seat. Mario ate his food happily, not noticing the sad and abandoned look forcing it's way onto his baby brother's face.

"So are you gonna be doing anything for the show this year?" Mario asked, causing Luigi to nearly choke on the piece of bacon he just swallowed. He nearly felt on the verge of tears because he just wanted to shout and tell his brother he was supposed to do it with him, not Toad.

Instead, he just answered. "Nah."

"It's a shame, it would be fun. And maybe you could have gotten over your stage fright."

Luigi gave a small, forced chuckle and shook his head. "Nah. I'll just cheer you on, big bro... Like always." The last part Luigi said quietly enough to where Mario couldn't hear.

"That'll be great. I'll be watching for you." Mario laughed.

"Anyway, I'm gonna head to the castle to practice." Mario exclaimed as he finished his food and put the dirty dish in the sink. "Be back later."

"Okay." Luigi replied as his brother left the house. As soon as the door shut, placing a barrier between him and his brother, Luigi felt tears slide down his cheek.

"No! I can't cry!" He told his self. "It's my own fault for being such coward. He's probably better off doing it with anybody else anyways. I'll only get in his way."

Drying his tears and placing his "I'm fine" face on. He decided to go to Daisy to get his mind off the talent show. Daisy was the person one who knew about Luigi's feelings caused by his brother Mario continuously forgetting and breaking his promises to Luigi. After locking up the house he made his way to Sarasaland.

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><p>As he approached Daisy's castle he felt his sadness disappear. He knocked on the door and it was immediately opened by none other than Princess Daisy. Instead of her usual yellow dress, she wore a similar outfit to her sports uniform only with orange pants instead of shorts.<p>

"Oh, hey Luigi!" She greets, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "What's going on?"

"Nothing much." He lied. "Just coming for a visit."

"Oh that's cool. Well, Toadette, Yoshi and I were just about to go practice for the talent show. Speaking of which, shouldn't you and Mario be practicing your act soon? I hear those are very difficult to master."

That did it. He tried his hardest not to, but Luigi broke down in tears and fell to his knees. Worried about her friend, she knelt down next to him and placed a hand around his shoulder. "What's wrong?" She asked.

He took a deep breath, tears still falling. "I'm sorry Daisy. I thought I could handle it, but... but..." She shook her head sadly.

"It's no problem. You know I'm always there for a friend in need." She comforted.

"Did he do it again?" She replied and he nodded. She knew Mario and Luigi were supposed to do the show together many times, but Mario had always forgotten and let one of his fans to be his partner. Luigi had never actually told her until the last time, she actually figured it out on her own when the show went on and there was no sign of Luigi anywhere. If she was there the previous years she would have noticed sooner, but that was the first show she attended, and only because Luigi had told her he and Mario were gonna be in it together. The look on his face when he talked about performing with his brother was almost entrancing. He was truly happy. Since Luigi wasn't in it so she went to search for her boyfriend and found him crying in his room. That's when he told her everything. She had never felt so angry with anyone before, but she felt angry with Mario for completely forgetting about Luigi.

She sort of knew what Luigi felt. It was a bit different with her though. She was always being compared to her older cousin, Princess Peach. She always felt like nothing she ever did was good enough. Luigi knew this fact about her as well, he had told her many times that she was her own person and shouldn't listen to what others said. _"You're beautiful, smart, funny, and very good at sports. You'll always be the best princess in the world to me." He smiled. _

Daisy loved that he always did everything he could to make others happy, especially her and Mario. She didn't find it fair at all that he had to be the one to suffer the most.

"He- he always does this... I don't even know why I keep getting upset every time. I should be used to being forgotten by him, by everyone, by now. I mean, we even go on adventures all the time, yet he's the only one who gets the parties in his honor because they all completely forget I even exist!" He stopped, the tears slowing down. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring my problems to you again. I just really wished he would remember this time. I really wanna get over my stage fright, but I don't think I can without Mario."

She knew he had bad stage fright and would only do the show if Mario was with him, Mario was literally Luigi's hero. Luigi even stated once how he would be completely lost without his older brother. Guess that happens when someone gets too used to being overshadowed, especially by someone they look up to. Even Daisy could tell Luigi stood deep within his older brother's shadow, so much everyone else easily forgets Luigi has just as much hand in their adventures to save the kingdoms, even the world, as Mario. Everyone seemed to just look straight through the said partner and just looked at the, in their minds, main hero. She even remembered Luigi saying once that it had felt like the world just forgot he was even there.

She knew Mario never noticed, he was the kind of person who just got caught up in the moment; and while she also thought Luigi should just let his brother know about his neglection, she knew he didn't want to be a bother to his brother or anyone else. She knew that even Luigi was aware that they were both partially to blame. Mario for not taking the time to realize his mistakes when it came to his brother; and Luigi for not facing his fears and just telling his brother how he truly felt. But then again, it's only natural the green hero would have low self-confidence after living so long in the darkness of his brother's shadow. _'Eh, I'll just mostly blame Mario.'_ She thought, slightly playful.

Daisy was broken out of her thoughts. "I know it's his choice who he partners with. But I guess, it's my own fault for not reminding him." He smiled sadly.

"No! Okay, maybe a little. But he should NEVER forget about his own brother or break a promise he made to you." Daisy decided then and there to finally have Luigi tell Mario the truth. And she could only think of one way to do that. Well, she could think of quite a few ways, but this particular idea was way more fun. She grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet before dragging him into the castle.

"Woah! Where are we going?" He asked, his sadness disappearing and replaced by confusion.

"You'll see!" She replied, laughing.

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><p>A few minutes later Luigi found himself standing in a music room with Daisy, Toadette, Yoshi, and a bunch of instruments.<p>

"W-what is this?" Luigi asked.

"Well, if you must know." Daisy teased. "We decided to get together and perform a song for the talent show. Toadette is on keyboard and bass, which she's pretty good at rotating by the way. Yoshi is on drums and I'm going to play guitar." She paused for a moment, studying the impressed look on Luigi's face. "But we still can't come up with a song... Plus.." She paused, grabbing a black mic. "We still need a lead singer." She finished, handing a now stunned Luigi the mic.

He stared at it for a moment. "But.. I.. I.. I don't wanna make you guys lose."

Daisy interrupted, "It doesn't matter. All that matters to us is going up there and having fun. With friends."

"Plus it'll be a good way to get over your stage fright." Toadette interviened. Yoshi made a happy noise, indicating he agreed.

"Yeah. So what do you say? You in?" Daisy asked.

Luigi thought about it for a while, he had to admit it would be fun performing with his girlfriend and friends. He finally nodded. "Sure, but I don't know the first thing about writing a song." They all thought for a while.

"Maybe you could try to just write about how you feel." Daisy suggested. "Maybe about the feelings you could never actually tell Mario." This seemed to somewhat interest the green brother. Daisy noticed he was considering it and was pleased with herself.

If he could put his feelings into a song, maybe then everyone- maybe Mario- would understand how lonely he really felt inside.

"O-o-k I'll t-try!" He answered nervously.

"Great!" The others cheered happily. "We'll help you write the song if you want." Toadette offered.

Luigi shook his head, "No thank you. But I think I have an idea." Daisy could tell he seemed pretty confident for the first time in...well, ever.

Daisy took this as a very good sign. "You go ahead and write it. We can all start practicing after you finish."

"Okay. I guess I'll go home and start writing it." He informed.

Daisy gave him another kiss on the cheek, "Good luck. I know you'll write something great." He blushed at the comment and made his leave.

Before he exited the room he turned back to Daisy. "You set this all up, didn't you." He gave a playful smirk.

Daisy joked back, acting innocent. "Why, whatever could you possibly mean, dear?" Luigi felt a genuine smile form.

"Thank you." He thanked, making the desert princess blush.

"No p-problem." She stuttered for the first time ever, earning a humorous chuckle from Luigi as he made his exit.

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><p>It was nearly ten at night by the time Mario returned home from practice. He noticed that his dinner was already made and wrapped on the table. "<em>Must have went to bed already."<em> He thought as he unwrapped the plate of lasagna and ate it. He and Toad had not been very productive until about an hour before he had left. Their equipment had a few bugs and some of the magic tricks were a little harder to master than they had expected. But they didn't mind since they still had about a month left to practice.

He finished eating and washed his dishes. He made his way to the room, making sure to be quiet so he didn't wake his brother. However, as he entered the room he noticed Luigi was still up, though looking like he could fall asleep at any moment. He was sitting at his desk, it looked like he was writing something. His old acoustic guitar was sitting next to his desk.

Not wanting to sneak up on him or spook him, Mario spoke softly," Hey bro. You still up?"

Luigi turned around. "Yeah, I was finishing something up."

Mario raised his brow in fascination. "What are you working on? A story or something."

"Nah, it's just a song." He answered.

"I didn't know you were into writing music." Mario announced, impressed.

" Well, Daisy asked if I would for her group for the talent show since they couldn't think of anything to write. I just finished it and I was just looking over it for any adjustments."

"Oh, so are you gonna do the talent show?"

"Yeah, I guess. She was kindda insistent that I'd sing the song I wrote. I figured I might as well get over my stage fright sooner or later."

"That's great! It'll be a lot more fun if you're there too." He said as he grabbed his night clothes. "So, can I read it?"

"No. You'll have to wait until the show to hear it." Luigi answered nonchalantly.

Mario accepted the answer and asked one last question, "So you're gonna sing it?" He took Luigi's redden face as a yes and chuckled. "Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever heard you sing before. Strange since I've known you since you were born." He stated. "Well, whatever, I know you can do it if you put your mind to it. Anyways, I'm going to go take a shower."

"Ok. Well, I'm heading to bed. Night."

As Mario went to the bathroom door and entered, Luigi hid his lyric sheet under his pillow, knowing his brother would try to read it if he left it in plain sight. He then proceeded to go to sleep... and for the first time in a while, he wore a small smile.

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><p>The next day Luigi brought his song to Daisy's to show the others.<p>

Daisy, Toadette, and Yoshi were just finishing reading it. "Wow, this is great." Daisy and the others complimented in excitement.

"T-thanks." Luigi smiled.

"You wrote this all last night?" Toadette asked, amazement in her voice.

"Yeah, well... I kindda had a while to think about it." While Toadette and Yoshi didn't get his meaning, Daisy got it all too well.

But instead of feeling sad she cheered, "Okay! Let's get practicing!"

"Yeah!" Everyone broke out into laughter and smiles as they practiced over and over again. Making tons of mistakes, but having fun anyway.

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><p><em><strong>The Day of the Talent Show<strong>_

The show was held in the late afternoon and went on after sundown. The crowd roared and cheered in excitement and humor as contestant after contestant performed their acts.

Some of the acts consisted of unicycle riding, juggling, a one toad band (did not end well for the poor toad and anyone standing in the front), and a puppet show about Mario's adventures fighting Bowser. Luigi found it highly offensive considering they made him the clumsy sidekick that was always needed help. Though Mario was too busy laughing at the jokes to notice the way they interpreted his brother.

The second to last act was Mario and Toad with their super mystifying magic act that amazed the crowd. It started off with a simple hat trick, then went on to more funny yet cool tricks. Mario "accidentally" put Toad in a dress while trying to make him disappear. Everyone, even Luigi, got a kick out of their performance.

Before Mario's act was over, Luigi, Daisy and the others were getting ready for their act. The final act of the night that took place just as the stars began to shine. Luigi found it ironic considering the nature of his song.

Instead of his usual attire, Luigi wore a green t-shirt with blue jeans and a green scarf around his neck. The only thing that remained the same was his signature hat. Daisy wore the same outfit she used in rehearsals, claiming she felt most comfortable in it, though Luigi wasn't complaining. Toadette was wearing a pink rock star type dress with little flower designs on it while Yoshi wore black sunshades.

Daisy could see the worry written on her boyfriend's face as Mario's act finished and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. Just like we practiced." Luigi smiled, they had practiced so much that the song was permanently engraved into his brain. The crowd burst into applauses as Mario and Toad took their bows.

"Looks like we're up." Daisy informed.

Mario and Toad took one last bow as they exited the stage.

Mario stopped by Luigi and gave a thumbs up. Luigi returned it with a smile. "Good luck out there, bro. I'll be cheering you on." He said as Luigi made his way on to the stage, followed by Daisy, Yoshi and Toadette.

The crowd died down as the four took their place by their instruments. Luigi stood by the mic, his acoustic in his hands with the strap around his neck.

Luigi looked out into the crowd and gulped. The crowd seemed to multiply in front of his eyes. "_Maybe I shouldn't have wrote such a personal song. What if nobody likes it. Or what if they think I'm a wimp." _In the middle of his worry ranting he noticed his brother standing in the side of the stage, his smile seemed to lessen his worry and doubt.

_Here goes everything._

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><p><strong><em>In this part of the story- Examples of fonts and meanings<em>**

**Bold means description. **

Normal is for the words to the song.

_Italic is for Mario's thoughts._

_'Italic in between colons means Daisy and Toadette singing together'_

_Italic and underlined means Luigi, Daisy and Toadette sing_

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><p>"Can anybody hear me?" <strong>Luigi began strumming his guitar, a nervous expression on his face. <strong>

"Or am I talking to myself?" **As he sang more he began to relax and unconsciously allowed his facial expression match with his words, giving them a larger impact. Especially on his brother.**

"My mind is running empty," **Luigi shook his head as if shaking away his thoughts.**

"in this search for someone else" **The crowd seemed stunned by the green plumber's ability to sing so well. However, Mario had a different reaction.**

"Who doesn't look right through me." _What?_

"It's all just static in my head" **As he sings he grips his head softly, then released.**

"Can anybody tell me _why_ I'm lonely like a satel_lite_?" **All the instruments join in at once**.

**Mario began to feel a bit sad as he listened to the words his brother sang, even though they all seemed irrelevant he knew what they really meant somehow. He felt even worse when he noticed the pained and lonely expression on his baby brother's face.**

"Cause tonight I'm feeling like an astronaut"

"Sending SOS from this tiny box" _He's crying for help! All this time..._

"And I lost all signal when I lifted off" **Luigi made gestures with his hands as he sung.**

"Now I'm stuck out here and the world forgot" _Does he really think everyone's forgotten him?_

"Can I please come down, '_come down'_, cause I'm tired of drifting round and round" '_And round'_

"Can I please come down?" _Weege... _**Daisy strums a long note**

**Luigi fought the tears forming in his eyes. He willed them away and continued. Toadette and Daisy slow down their pace while Yoshi continues his on his drums.**

"I'm deafened by the silence" **Mario was beginning to piece everything together as the song continued.**

"Is it something that I've done?" _No, not you. Me._

"I know that there are millions" **Luigi glanced over to Daisy then looked back.**

"I can't be the only one who's so disconnected" _Did he truly feel that way?_

"It's so different in my head." **Luigi looks away from everyone for a brief second to emphasize his loneliness. Daisy gives him a sad look.**

"Can anybody tell me _why_ I'm lonely like a satel_lite_?" **Luigi made a pleading face.** _It's all my fault_

**The sun had already long since set completely and so the crowd started waving little mushroom flashlights back and forth. Others were dancing with each other while the toads that did the puppet show felt ashamed by their act.**

**Toadette and Daisy once again plays at their best, wanting the song to be perfect in every way. **"Cause tonight I'm feeling like an astronaut"

"Sending SOS from this tiny box"

"And I lost all signal when I lifted off"

"Now I'm stuck out here and the world forgot" **He gripped his chest as if his heart was hurting**

"Can I please come down?" 'Come down?' "cause I'm tired of drifting round and round" 'And round'

"Can I please come down?"

**Yoshi and Daisy let off for a split second then played harder than ever for the next part. Gaining many cheers from the crowd.**

"Now I lie awake and scream in the zero gravity" **Luigi grabbed the mic stand and pulled it out and sang harder, it looked and sounded so natural to Mario, he began to wonder why he never heard him sing before.**

"And it's starting to weigh down.. on me." _Sorry. _**Luigi walked up to the edge of the stage and slightly bent down as the song hit the line that required more breath than the others. Mario began to cheer for his brother.**

"Let's abort this mission now"

"Can I please come _down_?"

**Daisy and Yoshi hits their long note while Toadette switches to keyboard.**

**Toadette begins playing a soft tune. By this time, Luigi allowed a few tears to fall. Mario was already close to tears but seeing the tears flow from his brother made a few fall as well. Luigi placed the mic back on it's stand and let go. Allowing his arms to freely move.**

"So tonight I'm calling all astronauts" **He sang softly into the mic.**

"all the lonely people that the world forgot"

"If you hear my voice come pick me up"

"Are you out there?"

"Cause you're all I've got!" **He returned to singing strongly. **_You've got me, and I swear I'll hurt you anymore._

**Toadette quickly switches back to bass. And Yoshi, followed by Daisy, join back in for one last time.**

"And tonight I'm feeling like an astronaut"

"Sending SOS from this tiny box"

"And I lost all signal when I lifted off"

"Now I'm stuck out here and the world forgot"

**Luigi jumped into the air and without taking a breath or missing a note he continued.** "_Cause tonight I'm feeling like an astronaut_"

"_Sending SOS from this tiny box_"

**Daisy spun around.** "To the lonely people that the world forgot"

"Are you out there?"

"Cause 'you're all I've got!'" **Daisy walked up to the mic with Luigi and sung into it as well.**

"Can I please come down?" **Daisy then walked over to Toadette's mic.**

'Please! Please! Please!' **Toadette and Daisy echoed using the same mic.**

"Cause I'm tired of drifting round and round."

"Tired of drifting around!" **Daisy added.**

"Can I please come down?"

'Please! Please! Please!' **Toadette and Daisy echoed once more.**

"Can I please come down?"

"Can I please come down?" **By this time Luigi was breathing heavily, but he wore a smile, knowing he did the best he could.** **Yoshi hit his final notes while Daisy allowed hers to die down on it's own.**

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><p>As the music died the crowd cheered louder than they did the whole night. The band received an already standing ovation from the crowd. As Luigi exited the stage he was greeted by an unexpected hug from the one person he wanted the song to reach. Judging by the tears flowing from his older brother, Luigi would say they were read loud and clear.<p>

"I'm so sorry, Weege." He apologized, pulling back to look his brother in the eyes. He noticed a difference in his eyes than before. They looked relieved... As if a huge weight had been lifted off the younger man's shoulders. "_Is that how much I made him suffer?"_

"I'm really glad." Luigi whispered, trying to fight back the lump in his throat. "I was scared you wouldn't get my message."

Mario dried his tears, "Message received, loud and clear, bro."

Luigi began crying harder, choking out words the best he could manage. "I always felt that I- I wasn't important because you always made plans with me, but you always kept forgetting. I felt so alone."

Mario, remembering the promise he made many times over to Luigi about joining the talent show together, widened his eyes in shock and guilt. "I'm so sorry. I never realized. I never meant to make you feel like that. I swear."

"It's okay. It's my fault. I couldn't just come out and say it like I should have done in the first place." Luigi smiled. Mario knew this smile, it was one he saw plenty of times before. "_Was it always so forced?"_

Mario shook his head. "No. It's not. As your brother, I should have never made you feel forgotten. Nor should I have ever let anyone treat you like that. I won't make that mistake ever again. I promise." He pulled Luigi into a hug once more. Luigi hesitated but then returned it.

As soon as Mario and Luigi finished talking they heard Princess Peach on the stage. "Please give a hand to all our wonderful constants." The crowd cheered. "Sadly only one can be named the winner, but this doesn't mean everyone is not talented. So now it's time for the winner to be announced."

Peach thanked. "The winner is..." Yoshi, who was still by his drums, gave a drum roll. "Luigi, Daisy, Toadette and Yoshi for their wonderful and heartfelt song!"

The crowd roared in cheers. Luigi stood behind stage, shocked by what he had heard. He received a push and noticed Mario giving a thumbs up with a huge grim. "CONGRATS! You deserve it!" He said.

"YAHOO!" He, Daisy, Toadette and Yoshi cheered happily. Daisy cupped her hands around his face and rewarded him with a real kiss. The crowd began to make awe noises, making the green plumber turn bright red.

"Give it up for Luigi!" Mario shouted as he walked up to Luigi and held up his fist up high. The audience began cheering louder. As Luigi stood up on stage with his friends and his brother, he looked at the trophy he was holding, then looked at the cheering crowd, he no longer felt alone and forgotten.

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><p>From then on, Mario remembered and kept his promises to Luigi. Luigi never felt lonely or alienated again. And the next year he, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Toad, Toadette and Yoshi all took part in the show together. They sung, danced, and even added magic tricks in as well.<p>

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><p><strong>I hope everyone liked it. Leave a review and let me know what u think. :)<strong>

**Song: Astronaut by Simple Plan **


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